One key thing here is: "a campus employee spotted an exchange...reported it"

There are a lot of Nanny-Staters out there, who've gone whole hog for the enterprise; e.g. Obama voters. Lots of people are thrilled with the central authorities taking people down at the complainer's behest, even innocent people.

I'm at the point that I have no sympathy for them. They were stupid enough to make the exchange in front of everyone.

So now you have two more libs that are going to be against drug laws.

"Why should the government be allowed to tell you what you can and cannot put in your body and how you can and cannot transform your mind?"

Umm, I believe they already do, with all sorts of drugs. Helpful or not.

Jim has it right though, if you're gonna be stupid...I smoke pot, but you don't see me lighting a joint in front of a cop. (Well, unless it's Canada Day on the Hill.....they don't bust you then.)

This one for me is slightly "iffy" (and I am for legalization).

I say this because I happen to know what happens to colleges where students over dose on medications, drugs, alcohol (and yes - even water from hazing during Greek week). Parents sue. "We left our (adult?) child with you and you should have had some policy...." and then the college gets their asses handed to them on a plate and the tuition goes up for everyone.

If it's illegal, and there is a school policy against it - I guess I am with Jim P on this - be smarter about the exchange or accept the consequences.

I think "felony" is much too harsh but that is what fancy attorneys are for- pleading out or down the charge.

Right now, society need to change before we will see any of this go away. People can't have it both ways.

Dollars to donuts if the kid on the receiving end of these drugs died from a bad reaction or taking these as part of a concoction causing overdose and died - the college would be paying out millions.

Presumably, prescription drugs have more risk to them, such as side effects or addiction. (Note, I said, "presumably.")

I'm guessing the thinking is that with the associated complications, it requires someone with the necessary expertise to monitor their use.

That aside, selling your prescriptions is a pretty stupid thing to do. Depending on the substance, it increases the risk to the person doing this selling, because he must now go without, and to the person taking it, who doesn't know if he's allergic, or perhaps the prescription will act differently on him.

You say personal freedom, Amy. I say, doing stupid things with your prescription becomes my burden in insurance premiums and taxes.

Victory in the war on drugs is right around the corner. Still.

Vyvanse is similar to Adderall, which I take by prescription for ADHD. It transforms my writing day from torture to hard work I love.

And Adderall is basically meth.

I don't doubt it helps you dramatically, but it's got a lot of problems, especially with kids playing with psychoactive substances, on whims and without knowledge.

Now, if you want to say, we should scrap the prescription drug framework, that's fine - but we wouldn't have a lot of drugs - such as Adderall. (Which was refined carefully from weight loss drugs.)

So just understand that it's not a vacuum.

Adding to the issue at this particular case, is that it's usually a issue of some kid (fraudulently) getting a prescription, and then the cost is largely picked up by insurance.

Then the kid goes and sells to experimenters.

If they choose to do that, why shouldn't it be their choice?

If I'm not paying for the drugs, or the effects when they screw up their bodies and heads, I don't care.

But right now that's not the case - and we can push that it ought to be - but even if it were, we'd still have some rules and regulations in place and expectations for behavior.

... These kids don't look primed to do well with less rules, I'll note.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/03/us/concerns-about-adhd-practices-and-amphetamine-addiction.html

Richard’s father. Emphasizing that he had no intention of bringing legal action against any of the doctors involved, Mr. Fee

What kinda un-American crap is that?

SUE SUE SUE!!!

It's the American Way!

I took adderall once, I was awake for days. I got sooooooo much work done.

Ritalin did virtually nothing for me.

My very high achieving,2 Ivy League degree having, Supreme Court clerking super star older brother is very open about Adderall as a performance tool. Work all night, drive all night, whatever. Pop an adderral and it's all good! I've never had one. Uppers and I don't play well. But I have evolved my opinion to all prescription drugs should be legal and OTC to those over 18. I'll probably get there on the illegal stuff too. Things are so far the other direction now it's pushing more and more people towards legalization.

My straight laced southern mom also has no issue crabbing one of her hubby's Xanax when she hasn't slept good for a few nights. Why shouldn't she be able to go down to the store and buy some? People CAN be allergic or have bad reactions to anything-even aspirin. That doesn't mean other people should decide whether an adult can have it or not.

I get very occasional migraines, which I have found through all sorts of trial and error respond very well to 20 mg vicodan and 600 mgs ibuprofen, taken together. I might as well try to get to the moon as get the vicodan legally though. Insane. (fortunately, college kids have nothing on SAHM's when it comes to suppliers. Apparently some people have cooler Drs than me).

"Why shouldn't she be able to go down to the store and buy some?"

You willing to right the wrongs when she drives under the influence and kills somebody?

How do you implement your policy and protect the consumer - the public?

I don't think you recognize the absurdity of stating that "people CAN be allergic or have bad reactions to anything-even aspirin" and then recommending self-medication with whatever you can find.

Know what the Air Force calls a pilot who self-medicates? Grounded.

In your scenario, the allergic reaction happens unsupervised, and you have a death.

Not well thought out.

Although I'm generally all for legalization, I worry about what would happen if we accomplished it, because we've now raised at least one, if not two, generations of Americans to be mindless, dependent, irresponsible sheep. The number of citizens under the age of, say, 60 able to think and reason and act somewhat responsibly without someone telling them what to do has declined dramatically. We've gotten to the point where we may not be able to handle a free society anymore, and ten years from now as the current crop of helicoptered precious darlings hits adulthood, it will be even worse.

It is hard to imagine that it isn't part of some kind of plan to increase our dependency on Big Brother. And I am not generally prone to conspiracy theories.

"Thanks, I haven't been in a Rumplestiltskin-like sleep for decades, so I'm aware of this."

More a comment on the fact that they think they know everything about these drugs, and which ones are helpful, and turn out, well, not.

I see drug recalls all the friggin time. And how many drugs are available out there now that are worse than the disease they supposedly treat? Even drugs for ADHD, while extremely helpful in most cases, (speaking from experience) can have serious side effects in extreme cases. Yet a harmless plant is criminalized so harshly that people spend years in jail?

I smoke pot, for the buzz, yes. I also find it calms me down. I have anxiety issues. I'm not going to be stupid here and say that pot cures anxiety and that's the only reason I smoke it, but it does help. I've tried Celexa, Wellbutrin, and at one point one idiot Dr. gave me Lorazapam. (Don't wanna be comatose, thank you. Yaargh.) Celexa was extremely helpful, but gave me heart palpitations. Why criminalize a drug proven to be harmless but prescribe the ones with side effects without even trying the other?

"We've gotten to the point where we may not be able to handle a free society anymore, and ten years from now as the current crop of helicoptered precious darlings hits adulthood, it will be even worse."

I don't think the human race has ever been able to handle a "free society". Look what we've done with it. Also, when you really get right down to it, a totally free society would be anarchy.

"While Ritalin made me a bit jittery, I can't even feel Adderall. I have to really be careful to remember when I've taken it so I don't take a double dose!"

Amy, is this possible?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradoxical_reaction

This happens with my husband, we have to be really careful! And the pharmacists always look at him funny.

It is hard to imagine that it isn't part of some kind of plan to increase our dependency on Big Brother. And I am not generally prone to conspiracy theories.

Now you will be. Here, here's some drugs for that.

----

Now, if we want to scrap the FDA, that's fine. Remember, the Food and Drug Act was passed with an express and stated rationale that it would never be used to remove drugs from the "front of the counter", and it would only be used to enhance drugs for those who wanted to pay for the extra quality.

And I doubt Amy would complain if we did. But before we can do that, we've got to dismantle the legal framework that other people are liable for your stupidity much less misfortune.

I'm all for that, don't get me wrong.

I just don't see it happening.

We've gotten to the point where we may not be able to handle a free society anymore,

That's part of the plan.

But I have faith in the kids - you're already starting to see where the kids today are realizing the Boomers screwed them over, and the retaliation is going to be epic.

Should this mean we criminalize possession of peanutbutter?

Don't give anybody any ideas.

"Should this mean we criminalize possession of peanutbutter?"

If you have kids in the elementary school system, they already have.

Ha! Just found this one....

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=526370707405512&set=a.497563373619579.111751.497561266953123&type=1&theater

"Should this mean we criminalize possession of peanutbutter?"

Tsk. Fallacy. When does the evidence and reason show up?